Petrography, origin and environment of deposition of the Shirdley Hill Sand of southwest Lancashire, England

A sedimentological study of the Late Devensian Shirdley Hill Sand clarifies its origin and mode of deposition. Mineralogical analyses show the sand was derived almost exclusively from fluvioglacial debris, but considerably changed by subsequent weathering. Particle size analyses, scanning electron microscopy of quartz grain surfaces and sedimentary structures all suggest that the deposit is aeolian. Rather than long-distance transport, repeated local redistribution of the fluvioglacial sand by multidirectional winds is suggested.